How to Sharpen Ceramic Knives at Home

While it is true that ceramic knives are famous for the super sharp edges, it's still not quite possible to ensure that a cutting edge will last a lifetime of heavy use. Sooner or later all that hacking away will produce a duller edge than what you got out of the box, and you'll have to take care of your ceramic knives to keep them working beautifully.

The good news is that it generally takes quite a bit longer for ceramic knives to get dull, and it's actually not so difficult to keep a sharp edge on a ceramic blade. Plenty of tools exist, sold by the same manufacturers that make ceramic knives in the first place, for just this sort of purpose.

Sharpening ceramic knives usually requires a diamond sharpener, though a few other materials do exist (silicone carbide, for example). Whenever attempting to sharpen a ceramic knife, be sure to follow manufacturer instructions and recommendations in regard to the materials required.

Electric sharpeners work quite well, and will take a great deal of the effort out of the whole process, which is especially helpful, and not just for the lazy. The sawing motion that is typical of certain sharpeners can be laborious, time consuming, and potentially unsafe if fatigued muscles end up slipping.

The other option is to buy other diamond knife sharpening tools, such as stones or rods, and sharpen manually.

Kyocera makes one of the best selling electric ceramic knife sharpeners available, probably because they also make some of the best ceramic knives available, too. Click on the options below to buy one of these tools online!

Kyocera, the manufacturer of a wide range of high quality ceramic knives, offers free sharpening service on all Kyocera knives. Customers simply need to send them in, and they'll come back good as new. For those looking to buy a set of knives just one time, this is a great way to deal with the inevitability of knife edge dulling, which the manufacturer is happy to take care of. In fact, manufacturers recommend this as the best way to handle knife sharpening needs, due to the specialized tools and consequent difficulty of home sharpening.

Farmer's markets are also good places to find knife sharpeners, depending on where you might be. Just be sure to point out it's a ceramic knife, and that should take care of things.

Ceramic knives offer a number of advantages over traditional materials like stainless steel, not just the extra sharp edge. Ceramic is immune to many types of corrosion, and will never rust. It's also quite easy to clean, and won't discolor or change the taste of foods.

On the downside, ceramic knives are rather brittle, meaning they can chip or snap, whereas steel will become deformed. Ceramic knives are not good for prying, and it's not a good idea to drop them on the floor. Of course, this goes for all knives, so just be careful with them.

Many ceramic knife manufacturers recommend using ceramics for softer things, such as slicing fruits and vegetables, and keeping a set of stainless steel knives for other purposes or heavy duty use. But the edge will stay sharp for quite a long time, especially if it's used only on soft things, which makes them a favorite of chefs of all sorts.

Find some more info on ceramic knives and pick up a set today: